Expanded board lath.



J. A. WALLER.

EXPANDED BOARD LATH- APPLICATION FILED AUG.26| 191a.

Patented Aug. 26

nvvsrvrom J1. Miller "74 ATTORNEY WITNESSES:

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN AUGUST WALLER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO EXPANDED WOOD LATECORPORATION, OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION.

EXPANDED BOARD LATH.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN A. WALLER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Expanded Board Lath, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to'building construction and has particularreference to expanded wood lath. The general object of the presentinvention is to effect further economies in material and labor; to speedup construction; to provide an expanded lath that will readily receiveand key to itself mortar and other plastic coatings; to provide a formof construction and arrangement of parts adapted to be manufacturedrapidly with the aid or simple machinery that will produce the finishedlath in a series of uninterrupted operations, and which shall haveself-contained or integral spacers that eliminate the cost of metalstrips and the like and firmly hold the strips of individual lath intheir proper spaced apart relations.

With the above-named objects in view my invention consists in the novelconstruction, combination and arrangement of parts, all as hereinafterdescribed in detail, illustrated in the accompanying drawing and moreparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing- Figure 1 is a face or outside view of a section of boardsawed and expanded with integral connecting ribs and spacers between theindividual strips of lath.

Fig. 2 is a section of board with saw-cuts therein as it appears priorto its expansion.

Fig. 3 is substantially a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 4. Fig. 4: isa broken away portion of Fig. 1 showing the opposite or rear side of thelath and particularly the integral braces or spacers between the stripsof lath.

Fig. 5 is a transverse section of Fig. 1, substantially similar to Fig.3 with the spacer portions omitted.

In the several views the expanded board as a whole is represented by thenumeral 2. In this board are a plurality of series of saw-cuts 3 to 9inclusive, each series overlapping the adjacent series preferably aboutone-third of its length. The board 2 is preferably about one-fourth ofan inch in thickness, so that one foot of lumber, board measure, whenmoderately expanded, will yield approximately eight square feet of lating.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed August 26, 1918,

shown in Fig. 5

Patented Aug. 26, 1919.

.Serial No. 251,406.

he saw-cuts 3 to 9 are, as shown, made at a uniform slant in the samedirection with reference to the edges of the board 2, and are arrangedto form connecting ribs 10, 10 between lath strips 11, 1.1. In thepresent improvement I obviate the cost, weight, material and projectionsfrom the surface of the lath involved in providing the usual means forholding lath strips in expanded positions, by providing the integralspacers specifically shown in Figs. 8 and 4:. As the diagonal ribs 10are thinner than the strips 11 and even with the front side, which makesthe rear faces of the lath project beyond said ribs. In these rearportions of the strips 11 I provide enlarged or mortar-key spaces byrabbeting the edges of the strips 11 beyond the plane of the connectingribs, as at'17, 17 Figs. 4 and 5.

The thus narrowed rear portions of the strips 11 are separatelyidentified by the numeral 18 to distinguish them from the wider outerface portions 11, 11.

Out of these rear or key portions 18 I out at suitable intervalssections 19 by making two longitudinal cuts at right angles to eachother, labeled 20 and 21, and a transverse cut 22. The thus partlyreleased section 19 is then bent out at right angles and caused to bearagainst the adjacent lath 11 in which I provide a recess or shallowpocket 23 into which the free end of the section 19 is inserted and heldagainst, angular movement. I make it possible to bend the section 19without breaking off the fibers at its base, by partly crushing orpulping the wood as at 2.4, 24 which show indentations made by suchpulping. This makes the fibers at the base sufliciently free and pliableto withstand off the bending strain. In Figs. 3 and 4t one lath strip isseparately indicated by the numeral 11. In this strip the spacer 19 isshown before being crushed at its base and bent out and is indicated as19.

without breaking Its dotted lines indicate its operative position at theright hand side of Figs. 3

and 1 the remaining portions of which show the ends of the spacers l9become firmly cemente'd into the force the strips 11 together isordinarily sufficient to hold the spacers Sheathing (not shown) may, inlike manner, be glued or. cemented to the rear sides of the sheets oflathing by applying it to the lath immediately after the dipping orcoating re ferred to.

I claim as 1nyiinvention- V,

1. A Wood lath that consists of aboard with a plurality of series ofcuts therethrough and expanded into spaced-apart l strips of lathwithconnective ribs thereb-etween and spacers between said strips that arealso a part of said board. 7 a 2. A Wood lath Which consists of a boardrecesses 23. However, the; tension of the connectlng ribs tend ng tofirmly in place.

with a series of parallel saw cuts therein and partly cut and bent outspacer portions which hold said saw cuts expanded.

by said lugs;

l. A Wood lath which consists of an eX panded board having a pluralityof series of identicalsaw cutstherethrough and having also, a seriesofspacers struck out and pro jecting from one strip to another and holding said strips apart. p 3

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name.

JOHN AUGUST WALLER'.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each,b'yaddres'singf the "Commissi'on er of Patents, Washington IL 0 7, i v v

